Tips from the Experts

Sometimes, there are things you just learn over time. Our team of experts have shared some of the trade secrets they have learned through successes and failures.

Jim Davidson

Jim Davidson is the Managing Partner at SprayWorks Equipment Group. He has 50 years of experience in the spray foam industry and has worked alongside many of the industry pioneers. Jim has designed and created industry equipment such as; Spraybot, Barrel Blazer, Roboliner and Polybot - among others.

John Davidson

John Davidson is the VP of Operations at SprayWorks Equipment Group and is an SPFA PCP Certified Roofing and Insulation Installer. With over 25 years of experience in the spray foam and polyurea industry, John brings a wealth of knowledge and hands-on experience. He has worked on commercial and residential buildings, bridges and infrastructure.

Dave Penta

Dave Penta is the VP of Sales at SprayWorks Equipment Group. For the past 30+ years, Dave has worked with multiple industries including; commercial and residential buildings, along with spray foam and coatings systems.

SPRAY GUNS

Daily job logs are vital to the operation of your foam company because they are a true gauge of productivity, profitability and your break-even point. Job logs assist your staff in cultivating positive documentation habits of their day to day job activity.

This in turn helps you and your crew maintain expensive equipment, track costly material and supplies, assure customer satisfaction, give the true story of actual time and material versus planned time and material, lets you know which builders are properly accommodating your staff and tracks all vital manufacturer required information.

All this information is easily tracked in a document that takes less than 10 minutes to fill out per day. If you’ve ever been involved in a nasty job-site litigation you know this is 10 minutes a day very well spent.

The equipment used today for spraying plural component urethane foam and coatings provide the means to preheat the A and R chemicals, pressurize the chemical to the manufacturer’s recommended PSI and deliver that conditioned and heated chemical to the gun via a heated hose. Most units today utilize a system which provides automatic hose heat. The proportioners are equipped with a controller which receives a signal from a temperature sensing unit. The signal indicates the temperature of the chemical in the hose from a remote distance from the proportioner and ideally just before the gun.

Sometimes chemical cleaning the A and B filters can leave too much residue and plug up the screen hole. My suggestion? Re-new your filter screens.

You can do it with a few tricks. Try using a light amount of heat from a torch and burn out any restrictions. Once the restrictions are burned off, use air to blow out excess from the screens. Finally, hold your screen up to a light to ensure it is clear and ready to use again.

Machine screens and spray gun screens come in three different sizes; 80, 60, and 40 mesh. Using a larger mesh filter allows smaller particles to pass through your processing system and out the spray tip of the gun. For most polyurethane foam and polyurea, I suggest using 60 or 40 mesh screen to reduce filter clogging.

When I find my equipment is spraying just right, I grab a pocket thermometer. With a variety of elements including sun and fluctuating temps outside, that’s what I use to maintain the temperature between my gun and proportioner.

I always stick a pocket thermometer at the halfway point of my hose, so if there’s 200 feet I stick it in the sleeve at 100 feet. This way, if the material sprays a little off, I just check that thermometer to ensure the hose is the same temp all the way through.

The B Side, in general, is less likely to cause contamination in the screens. As a result, B Side screens are often neglected.

One possible cause of B Side pressure loss is the collection of paint chips over time. Spray foam drums are recyclable and during the recycling process, some of the drums are repainted inside. Over time, the B component can soften the paint in the drum, causing it to flake off and collect in the Y-filter assembly – restricting flow to the machine. Making the Y-filter assembly a priority to clean can help prevent the collection of paint chips.

I make it a habit to check my A Filter before I start every morning. To me, that’s the only way I can pressurize the machine and accurately read gauges to eliminate any problems. The reason I check the A Filter in the morning is, regardless of when the gun is cleaned the previous day, the cleaner tends to leave a layer of film on the screen.

Over a short period of time, ISO material can accumulate on the pump – preventing the equipment from working correctly and causing potential damage. A quick daily inspection and removal of crystallization can prevent costly down time and will extend the life of your pump.

Every gun has a safety feature. You should get in the habit of turning on the safety feature whenever you stop spraying – whether it’s to talk to someone or check your depth. It’s an often overlooked step when a new applicator is learning, but can quickly cause serious injury or damage if the spray gun releases unmanaged chemical.

When heating up your hose, I highly recommend unravelling the bulk of it. There are two reasons why.

One – the hose will create hot spots and could potentially get to the point where the hose would melt and burst open after an extended period of time. The second reason – as you spray material, you’ll get inconsistent heat and as your material cures, your application will become poor and inconsistent.

Post navigation

HOSES

Daily job logs are vital to the operation of your foam company because they are a true gauge of productivity, profitability and your break-even point. Job logs assist your staff in cultivating positive documentation habits of their day to day job activity.

This in turn helps you and your crew maintain expensive equipment, track costly material and supplies, assure customer satisfaction, give the true story of actual time and material versus planned time and material, lets you know which builders are properly accommodating your staff and tracks all vital manufacturer required information.

All this information is easily tracked in a document that takes less than 10 minutes to fill out per day. If you’ve ever been involved in a nasty job-site litigation you know this is 10 minutes a day very well spent.

The equipment used today for spraying plural component urethane foam and coatings provide the means to preheat the A and R chemicals, pressurize the chemical to the manufacturer’s recommended PSI and deliver that conditioned and heated chemical to the gun via a heated hose. Most units today utilize a system which provides automatic hose heat. The proportioners are equipped with a controller which receives a signal from a temperature sensing unit. The signal indicates the temperature of the chemical in the hose from a remote distance from the proportioner and ideally just before the gun.

Sometimes chemical cleaning the A and B filters can leave too much residue and plug up the screen hole. My suggestion? Re-new your filter screens.

You can do it with a few tricks. Try using a light amount of heat from a torch and burn out any restrictions. Once the restrictions are burned off, use air to blow out excess from the screens. Finally, hold your screen up to a light to ensure it is clear and ready to use again.

Machine screens and spray gun screens come in three different sizes; 80, 60, and 40 mesh. Using a larger mesh filter allows smaller particles to pass through your processing system and out the spray tip of the gun. For most polyurethane foam and polyurea, I suggest using 60 or 40 mesh screen to reduce filter clogging.

When I find my equipment is spraying just right, I grab a pocket thermometer. With a variety of elements including sun and fluctuating temps outside, that’s what I use to maintain the temperature between my gun and proportioner.

I always stick a pocket thermometer at the halfway point of my hose, so if there’s 200 feet I stick it in the sleeve at 100 feet. This way, if the material sprays a little off, I just check that thermometer to ensure the hose is the same temp all the way through.

The B Side, in general, is less likely to cause contamination in the screens. As a result, B Side screens are often neglected.

One possible cause of B Side pressure loss is the collection of paint chips over time. Spray foam drums are recyclable and during the recycling process, some of the drums are repainted inside. Over time, the B component can soften the paint in the drum, causing it to flake off and collect in the Y-filter assembly – restricting flow to the machine. Making the Y-filter assembly a priority to clean can help prevent the collection of paint chips.

I make it a habit to check my A Filter before I start every morning. To me, that’s the only way I can pressurize the machine and accurately read gauges to eliminate any problems. The reason I check the A Filter in the morning is, regardless of when the gun is cleaned the previous day, the cleaner tends to leave a layer of film on the screen.

Over a short period of time, ISO material can accumulate on the pump – preventing the equipment from working correctly and causing potential damage. A quick daily inspection and removal of crystallization can prevent costly down time and will extend the life of your pump.

Every gun has a safety feature. You should get in the habit of turning on the safety feature whenever you stop spraying – whether it’s to talk to someone or check your depth. It’s an often overlooked step when a new applicator is learning, but can quickly cause serious injury or damage if the spray gun releases unmanaged chemical.

When heating up your hose, I highly recommend unravelling the bulk of it. There are two reasons why.

One – the hose will create hot spots and could potentially get to the point where the hose would melt and burst open after an extended period of time. The second reason – as you spray material, you’ll get inconsistent heat and as your material cures, your application will become poor and inconsistent.

Post navigation

TRANSFER PUMPS

Daily job logs are vital to the operation of your foam company because they are a true gauge of productivity, profitability and your break-even point. Job logs assist your staff in cultivating positive documentation habits of their day to day job activity.

This in turn helps you and your crew maintain expensive equipment, track costly material and supplies, assure customer satisfaction, give the true story of actual time and material versus planned time and material, lets you know which builders are properly accommodating your staff and tracks all vital manufacturer required information.

All this information is easily tracked in a document that takes less than 10 minutes to fill out per day. If you’ve ever been involved in a nasty job-site litigation you know this is 10 minutes a day very well spent.

The equipment used today for spraying plural component urethane foam and coatings provide the means to preheat the A and R chemicals, pressurize the chemical to the manufacturer’s recommended PSI and deliver that conditioned and heated chemical to the gun via a heated hose. Most units today utilize a system which provides automatic hose heat. The proportioners are equipped with a controller which receives a signal from a temperature sensing unit. The signal indicates the temperature of the chemical in the hose from a remote distance from the proportioner and ideally just before the gun.

Sometimes chemical cleaning the A and B filters can leave too much residue and plug up the screen hole. My suggestion? Re-new your filter screens.

You can do it with a few tricks. Try using a light amount of heat from a torch and burn out any restrictions. Once the restrictions are burned off, use air to blow out excess from the screens. Finally, hold your screen up to a light to ensure it is clear and ready to use again.

Machine screens and spray gun screens come in three different sizes; 80, 60, and 40 mesh. Using a larger mesh filter allows smaller particles to pass through your processing system and out the spray tip of the gun. For most polyurethane foam and polyurea, I suggest using 60 or 40 mesh screen to reduce filter clogging.

When I find my equipment is spraying just right, I grab a pocket thermometer. With a variety of elements including sun and fluctuating temps outside, that’s what I use to maintain the temperature between my gun and proportioner.

I always stick a pocket thermometer at the halfway point of my hose, so if there’s 200 feet I stick it in the sleeve at 100 feet. This way, if the material sprays a little off, I just check that thermometer to ensure the hose is the same temp all the way through.

The B Side, in general, is less likely to cause contamination in the screens. As a result, B Side screens are often neglected.

One possible cause of B Side pressure loss is the collection of paint chips over time. Spray foam drums are recyclable and during the recycling process, some of the drums are repainted inside. Over time, the B component can soften the paint in the drum, causing it to flake off and collect in the Y-filter assembly – restricting flow to the machine. Making the Y-filter assembly a priority to clean can help prevent the collection of paint chips.

I make it a habit to check my A Filter before I start every morning. To me, that’s the only way I can pressurize the machine and accurately read gauges to eliminate any problems. The reason I check the A Filter in the morning is, regardless of when the gun is cleaned the previous day, the cleaner tends to leave a layer of film on the screen.

Over a short period of time, ISO material can accumulate on the pump – preventing the equipment from working correctly and causing potential damage. A quick daily inspection and removal of crystallization can prevent costly down time and will extend the life of your pump.

Every gun has a safety feature. You should get in the habit of turning on the safety feature whenever you stop spraying – whether it’s to talk to someone or check your depth. It’s an often overlooked step when a new applicator is learning, but can quickly cause serious injury or damage if the spray gun releases unmanaged chemical.

When heating up your hose, I highly recommend unravelling the bulk of it. There are two reasons why.

One – the hose will create hot spots and could potentially get to the point where the hose would melt and burst open after an extended period of time. The second reason – as you spray material, you’ll get inconsistent heat and as your material cures, your application will become poor and inconsistent.

Post navigation

SCREENS & FILTERS

Daily job logs are vital to the operation of your foam company because they are a true gauge of productivity, profitability and your break-even point. Job logs assist your staff in cultivating positive documentation habits of their day to day job activity.

This in turn helps you and your crew maintain expensive equipment, track costly material and supplies, assure customer satisfaction, give the true story of actual time and material versus planned time and material, lets you know which builders are properly accommodating your staff and tracks all vital manufacturer required information.

All this information is easily tracked in a document that takes less than 10 minutes to fill out per day. If you’ve ever been involved in a nasty job-site litigation you know this is 10 minutes a day very well spent.

The equipment used today for spraying plural component urethane foam and coatings provide the means to preheat the A and R chemicals, pressurize the chemical to the manufacturer’s recommended PSI and deliver that conditioned and heated chemical to the gun via a heated hose. Most units today utilize a system which provides automatic hose heat. The proportioners are equipped with a controller which receives a signal from a temperature sensing unit. The signal indicates the temperature of the chemical in the hose from a remote distance from the proportioner and ideally just before the gun.

Sometimes chemical cleaning the A and B filters can leave too much residue and plug up the screen hole. My suggestion? Re-new your filter screens.

You can do it with a few tricks. Try using a light amount of heat from a torch and burn out any restrictions. Once the restrictions are burned off, use air to blow out excess from the screens. Finally, hold your screen up to a light to ensure it is clear and ready to use again.

Machine screens and spray gun screens come in three different sizes; 80, 60, and 40 mesh. Using a larger mesh filter allows smaller particles to pass through your processing system and out the spray tip of the gun. For most polyurethane foam and polyurea, I suggest using 60 or 40 mesh screen to reduce filter clogging.

When I find my equipment is spraying just right, I grab a pocket thermometer. With a variety of elements including sun and fluctuating temps outside, that’s what I use to maintain the temperature between my gun and proportioner.

I always stick a pocket thermometer at the halfway point of my hose, so if there’s 200 feet I stick it in the sleeve at 100 feet. This way, if the material sprays a little off, I just check that thermometer to ensure the hose is the same temp all the way through.

The B Side, in general, is less likely to cause contamination in the screens. As a result, B Side screens are often neglected.

One possible cause of B Side pressure loss is the collection of paint chips over time. Spray foam drums are recyclable and during the recycling process, some of the drums are repainted inside. Over time, the B component can soften the paint in the drum, causing it to flake off and collect in the Y-filter assembly – restricting flow to the machine. Making the Y-filter assembly a priority to clean can help prevent the collection of paint chips.

I make it a habit to check my A Filter before I start every morning. To me, that’s the only way I can pressurize the machine and accurately read gauges to eliminate any problems. The reason I check the A Filter in the morning is, regardless of when the gun is cleaned the previous day, the cleaner tends to leave a layer of film on the screen.

Over a short period of time, ISO material can accumulate on the pump – preventing the equipment from working correctly and causing potential damage. A quick daily inspection and removal of crystallization can prevent costly down time and will extend the life of your pump.

Every gun has a safety feature. You should get in the habit of turning on the safety feature whenever you stop spraying – whether it’s to talk to someone or check your depth. It’s an often overlooked step when a new applicator is learning, but can quickly cause serious injury or damage if the spray gun releases unmanaged chemical.

When heating up your hose, I highly recommend unravelling the bulk of it. There are two reasons why.

One – the hose will create hot spots and could potentially get to the point where the hose would melt and burst open after an extended period of time. The second reason – as you spray material, you’ll get inconsistent heat and as your material cures, your application will become poor and inconsistent.

Post navigation

WEATHER

Daily job logs are vital to the operation of your foam company because they are a true gauge of productivity, profitability and your break-even point. Job logs assist your staff in cultivating positive documentation habits of their day to day job activity.

This in turn helps you and your crew maintain expensive equipment, track costly material and supplies, assure customer satisfaction, give the true story of actual time and material versus planned time and material, lets you know which builders are properly accommodating your staff and tracks all vital manufacturer required information.

All this information is easily tracked in a document that takes less than 10 minutes to fill out per day. If you’ve ever been involved in a nasty job-site litigation you know this is 10 minutes a day very well spent.

The equipment used today for spraying plural component urethane foam and coatings provide the means to preheat the A and R chemicals, pressurize the chemical to the manufacturer’s recommended PSI and deliver that conditioned and heated chemical to the gun via a heated hose. Most units today utilize a system which provides automatic hose heat. The proportioners are equipped with a controller which receives a signal from a temperature sensing unit. The signal indicates the temperature of the chemical in the hose from a remote distance from the proportioner and ideally just before the gun.

Sometimes chemical cleaning the A and B filters can leave too much residue and plug up the screen hole. My suggestion? Re-new your filter screens.

You can do it with a few tricks. Try using a light amount of heat from a torch and burn out any restrictions. Once the restrictions are burned off, use air to blow out excess from the screens. Finally, hold your screen up to a light to ensure it is clear and ready to use again.

Machine screens and spray gun screens come in three different sizes; 80, 60, and 40 mesh. Using a larger mesh filter allows smaller particles to pass through your processing system and out the spray tip of the gun. For most polyurethane foam and polyurea, I suggest using 60 or 40 mesh screen to reduce filter clogging.

When I find my equipment is spraying just right, I grab a pocket thermometer. With a variety of elements including sun and fluctuating temps outside, that’s what I use to maintain the temperature between my gun and proportioner.

I always stick a pocket thermometer at the halfway point of my hose, so if there’s 200 feet I stick it in the sleeve at 100 feet. This way, if the material sprays a little off, I just check that thermometer to ensure the hose is the same temp all the way through.

The B Side, in general, is less likely to cause contamination in the screens. As a result, B Side screens are often neglected.

One possible cause of B Side pressure loss is the collection of paint chips over time. Spray foam drums are recyclable and during the recycling process, some of the drums are repainted inside. Over time, the B component can soften the paint in the drum, causing it to flake off and collect in the Y-filter assembly – restricting flow to the machine. Making the Y-filter assembly a priority to clean can help prevent the collection of paint chips.

I make it a habit to check my A Filter before I start every morning. To me, that’s the only way I can pressurize the machine and accurately read gauges to eliminate any problems. The reason I check the A Filter in the morning is, regardless of when the gun is cleaned the previous day, the cleaner tends to leave a layer of film on the screen.

Over a short period of time, ISO material can accumulate on the pump – preventing the equipment from working correctly and causing potential damage. A quick daily inspection and removal of crystallization can prevent costly down time and will extend the life of your pump.

Every gun has a safety feature. You should get in the habit of turning on the safety feature whenever you stop spraying – whether it’s to talk to someone or check your depth. It’s an often overlooked step when a new applicator is learning, but can quickly cause serious injury or damage if the spray gun releases unmanaged chemical.

When heating up your hose, I highly recommend unravelling the bulk of it. There are two reasons why.

One – the hose will create hot spots and could potentially get to the point where the hose would melt and burst open after an extended period of time. The second reason – as you spray material, you’ll get inconsistent heat and as your material cures, your application will become poor and inconsistent.

Post navigation

PROCESS & DOCUMENTATION

Daily job logs are vital to the operation of your foam company because they are a true gauge of productivity, profitability and your break-even point. Job logs assist your staff in cultivating positive documentation habits of their day to day job activity.

This in turn helps you and your crew maintain expensive equipment, track costly material and supplies, assure customer satisfaction, give the true story of actual time and material versus planned time and material, lets you know which builders are properly accommodating your staff and tracks all vital manufacturer required information.

All this information is easily tracked in a document that takes less than 10 minutes to fill out per day. If you’ve ever been involved in a nasty job-site litigation you know this is 10 minutes a day very well spent.

The equipment used today for spraying plural component urethane foam and coatings provide the means to preheat the A and R chemicals, pressurize the chemical to the manufacturer’s recommended PSI and deliver that conditioned and heated chemical to the gun via a heated hose. Most units today utilize a system which provides automatic hose heat. The proportioners are equipped with a controller which receives a signal from a temperature sensing unit. The signal indicates the temperature of the chemical in the hose from a remote distance from the proportioner and ideally just before the gun.

Sometimes chemical cleaning the A and B filters can leave too much residue and plug up the screen hole. My suggestion? Re-new your filter screens.

You can do it with a few tricks. Try using a light amount of heat from a torch and burn out any restrictions. Once the restrictions are burned off, use air to blow out excess from the screens. Finally, hold your screen up to a light to ensure it is clear and ready to use again.

Machine screens and spray gun screens come in three different sizes; 80, 60, and 40 mesh. Using a larger mesh filter allows smaller particles to pass through your processing system and out the spray tip of the gun. For most polyurethane foam and polyurea, I suggest using 60 or 40 mesh screen to reduce filter clogging.

When I find my equipment is spraying just right, I grab a pocket thermometer. With a variety of elements including sun and fluctuating temps outside, that’s what I use to maintain the temperature between my gun and proportioner.

I always stick a pocket thermometer at the halfway point of my hose, so if there’s 200 feet I stick it in the sleeve at 100 feet. This way, if the material sprays a little off, I just check that thermometer to ensure the hose is the same temp all the way through.

The B Side, in general, is less likely to cause contamination in the screens. As a result, B Side screens are often neglected.

One possible cause of B Side pressure loss is the collection of paint chips over time. Spray foam drums are recyclable and during the recycling process, some of the drums are repainted inside. Over time, the B component can soften the paint in the drum, causing it to flake off and collect in the Y-filter assembly – restricting flow to the machine. Making the Y-filter assembly a priority to clean can help prevent the collection of paint chips.

I make it a habit to check my A Filter before I start every morning. To me, that’s the only way I can pressurize the machine and accurately read gauges to eliminate any problems. The reason I check the A Filter in the morning is, regardless of when the gun is cleaned the previous day, the cleaner tends to leave a layer of film on the screen.

Over a short period of time, ISO material can accumulate on the pump – preventing the equipment from working correctly and causing potential damage. A quick daily inspection and removal of crystallization can prevent costly down time and will extend the life of your pump.

Every gun has a safety feature. You should get in the habit of turning on the safety feature whenever you stop spraying – whether it’s to talk to someone or check your depth. It’s an often overlooked step when a new applicator is learning, but can quickly cause serious injury or damage if the spray gun releases unmanaged chemical.

When heating up your hose, I highly recommend unravelling the bulk of it. There are two reasons why.

One – the hose will create hot spots and could potentially get to the point where the hose would melt and burst open after an extended period of time. The second reason – as you spray material, you’ll get inconsistent heat and as your material cures, your application will become poor and inconsistent.